Seven Shades of Sin
by crescenteluce
Summary: "Envy has been in Hell for so long, he was convinced that he had lost the ability to hope. After all, five hundred years in Hell, with the knowledge that these five centuries will be repeated until you are nothing but dust to be trampled over and over again, doesn't do well for your positive demeanour." Ficlet about the Seven Sins from 3x01.


Even for a demon, Hell is a dreadful place. Everything there is made for torment, meant to drain every last bit of hope in your body so that you remain broken, knowing that you can only feel pain and that this suffering will last until the end of times.

Envy has been there for so long, he was convinced that he had lost the ability to hope. After all, five hundred years in Hell, with the knowledge that these five centuries will be repeated until you are nothing but dust to be trampled over and over again, doesn't do well for your positive demeanour.

But then there are whispers. Soft voices that speak of the yellow-eyed demon and the two humans. They say that there are plans to open the gates to Hell, to release those who suffer here. Envy tries to ignore them, but something stops him.

A little flicker of hope, deep in his chest.

After he feels it, he wishes for it to go away. In this place, hope is the bug and Hell is the windshield of a truck on fire. It is better to just feel nothing because if you are ever dumb enough to let yourself hope, they will get you again to show you that you will not get what you want, you will not get what you need and you will especially not get what you deserve.

It works for him, not allowing the whispers to take over his head, but that is until he is visited by an old friend.

Lust grabs him out of nowhere, pulling him close, uttering two words.

"They're here."

The hope is not containable anymore. It rushes through his veins and takes over every fibre in his being. He follows her, running up the seemingly endless stairway. It is hope that powers his feet, that causes him to skip every second step because if they are really there, if it is really true, he must take this chance for all it's worth. It is hope that help him ignore the stream of souls, demons and other beings around him, that keeps him going for as long as it's needed. It is hope that, when he finally arrives, enables him to leap out and taste the fresh air. His being transforms into a stream of black and as he rushes to the night sky, he can only think about how he thought he would never be out here again.

Freedom was always something he saw as just a word, but now he knows better. It's a state of mind, it's understanding that he will take everything he wants, everything he missed out on.

In his hurry, he takes the first vessel he sees. It's a middle-aged woman, walking down the street with three grocery bags in her hands. She falls down, the sudden intrusion of her mind rendering her unable to control her muscles. As he enters her mind, he sees a family, he sees children and he hears her screaming for help. Within seconds, he takes control of her and shuts her up. She pleads with him inside her mind, begging him to release her, to not hurt her, to leave her alone, please, no what's happening, why are you doing this, leave me alone, help me oh God someone help me.

He tells her that if she keeps distracting him, he will make her own hands strangle her children.

She is silent immediately, reduced to quiet whimpers in the back of his mind. In the meantime, Envy lets himself enter her cerebral cortex, where he can take over her motor skills. Flexing her fingers, blinking her eyes, he quickly adapts to being in a vessel again. Her feet start moving and her arms push her from the ground, the grocery bags forgotten on the pavement. When she's finally standing again, he takes complete control and pushes her away from his mind. From now on, she will just be a bystander, as he will do with her body as he pleases and it makes a grin form on her face. It has been a while, but there is still no sweeter feeling than knowing the world is your oyster and you will be crushing it in a minute.

He takes her body to a club in the city, where he starts looking for a more suitable vessel. For the things he does, he needs someone accessible, someone who can easily blend into crowds and talk to people. This vessel will attract too much attention, he can already see people glancing at her, probably wondering what a woman in her forties would do in a club.

People walk by, as he watches them. _Too young, too ugly, too pretty_, no one he sees embodies the average Joe he needs. So, in the meantime, he decides to have a little fun. A young woman watches him, frown lines etched in her face. She is probably wondering what his vessel is doing here, dressed in comfortable jeans and a crocheted vest. As he sits down on the stool next to the blonde, annoyance radiates from her, almost palpable. It only takes a hand on her shoulder, a whispered sentence and her expression softens, morphing into a neutral mask and on her way she goes. Pushing through the thick masses of people, she reaches a couple in the back. The girl makes a snide comment at her, but the expression on her faces stays neutral as she grabs the guy by the neck and smashes his head into the wall.

It takes almost two seconds before the screaming starts, but the girl doesn't let it stop her from grabbing the other half of the couple and trying to kiss her.

The scene unfolds before his eyes and he smiles as more people start panicking and screaming and guards come running to see what's going on. It's good to be back.

'You enjoy watching two girls, you pervert?'

A young woman starts talking to him. Envy turns around, wondering if he should send her into the mess as well, for some added fun, but as soon as she faces him, he smiles.

'Nice to see you, too. You look dashing, if I may say so.'

'You may.' Lust grins and spins around, the edges of her dress whirl around to reveal long, smooth legs. 'It wasn't easy to pick a suitable one. Either too fat or too skinny, tattoos or fake boobs, natural beauty is a bitch to find these days.'

'You did well.' He tells her. 'I hope to get rid of this one as soon as possible.'

'Be a little more subtle, by the way.' Lust notes after ordering a drink. 'You looked like a priest on an all-boys church camp when she got that guy's face acquainted with the wall.'

'I'm a sucker for some girl power.' He smirks at her. 'Now if you will excuse me, I've seen a pretty nice vessel right there, I'll be back in a minute.'

'Take your time, sweetheart.' She calls after him.

* * *

His new vessel is a young guy, average in all the senses of the word. After he got rid of his last vessel (throw her in front of a bus, no one will know it wasn't an accident, no attention will be drawn), Lust and Envy take it up to themselves to reunite their little band of brothers.

Gluttony is easily found, he always chooses to hang around in fast food joints, making people order multiple super sized meals and watching them stuff themselves until they pass out.

It doesn't take much time either to track down Pride. Lust pointed out that he would most certainly have taken a plastic surgeon as a vessel and she was right. When they arrived, he had been enjoying himself with telling clients that yes, they needed a nose job. And an ass lift. Oh and also they could use liposuction. And if they were here already, it would be a shame to not also do something about those disgusting moles. After they arrive, he gleefully tells them that one of his clients had committed suicide not half an hour after his consult. Lust congratulates him, but Envy sees her roll her eyes and silently agrees that this isn't really constructive to the bigger picture. But then again, there isn't anyone who takes criticism as bad as Pride, so they let it slide for now.

Pride tells them that Sloth is in the neighbourhood and they pick him up, letting him tell about the family he affected, watching them go hungry in their chairs but unable to stand up and eat. He laughs while he tells it and Envy sees in his eyes the same flash of pure, unbridled freedom that he sees with the rest of them.

It takes a few days to track down Wrath and Greed, but when they find them, they agree to stay in town for a while. When they're all reunited they feel like kings. Sure there is nothing that can stop them now, least of all those pesky little hunters.

A decision is made when Lust announces that the Winchesters are in town. Shouting ensues; every one of them has some ideas of their own to finish those two. Pride, as always, talks the most, about how they will let the older one kill the younger one, or how they can put them up against one another.

There is no lack of creativity that evening, but when Lust gives Envy a pointed look, he takes her outside to discuss what they both know.

'Those guys are nuts.' She says, the irritated frown back on her forehead. 'They really think that those two are just going to roll over and die.'

'Relax, love.' He smiles at her and for a moment, any passerby would think that they are just two regular people. 'Wrath made a good point about the bar, if we can lure them away from the city and into that bar, they can't go anywhere. Even those two can't take all seven of us at the same time.'

'You're right.' She tells him. 'We'll just have to get their attention.'

Envy turns around, his eye drawn by a big warehouse. Masses of people walk in and out, a lot of women with anxious looks on their faces. In the display window, a gigantic sign is shown, bright yellow letters telling everyone that the store had SHOES, BUY ONE PAIR GET ONE FREE ONLY TODAY. A pleasant shiver ran down his spine and he turned around to face Lust.

'Don't you worry my dear, I think I got that covered.'

A/N: Please don't shoot me, I haven't written fanfiction in over four years and I'm trying to get back in the game because I haven't stretched my writing muscle in a while. English is not my first language so if you see any errors, please tell me so I can correct them. Thank you for reading!


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